HALF TIME AND EVERYTHING IN THE BALANCE!
Michmoret: a fantastic place to sail, and a fantastic day to be sailing. Sunny skies, crystal sea, golden sand, and enough wind to ensure a full second day of racing here at the Techno293 European Championships 2019, where we are guests of the Emek-Hefer Sailing Club in the heart of a Sea Nature reserve that is more beautiful than you could possibly imagine.
The lucky young sailors who have entered enjoyed a great day’s sailing, with all fleets fighting out three more rounds of intense but fairly-fought racing, moving all four ladders forwards and beginning to point to the likely podium positions and our eventual 2019 Champions. Everyone was on best behaviour and the racing was all the better for it.
In the Junior Girls section, the local riders have taken a strangling grip of the top ten, with Tamar Steinberg having a great day to leapfrog Spain’s Azul Sanchez Vallejo to claim top rank, with Israeli teammates Danielle Ziv and Yael Yehuda poised close behind. In the Junior Boys it was a perfect day for Italy’s Federico Pilloni, three wins launching him up to 4thplace in the rankings. But not able to prevent Israel’s Daniel Halperin topping the ladder, with teammate Rom Levi second and Spain’s Billy Coll Tulloch hanging on to third place. Overnight leader Boris Shaw has slipped back to 5th place.
The Youth sailors were well behaved today, and racing went off with no issues, other than who would be leading at the halfway stage. A famous day for the Israeli team in Youth Girls, where they now occupy four of the top five places, with French rider Jade Bruche knocked back down the ladder after a post-race DSQ on Saturday. She has fought back to stay in reach of the podium, but will have to make her way past Israelis Linoy Schwartz and Daniele Peleg to get there.
The Bad/Youth Boys were good boys today, concentrating their energies on getting a fair result. Italy’s Davide Antognoli has kept his lead, ahead of Israel’s Rotem Lev and Ido Pomerantz, with French rider Jules Chantrel close behind in fourth.
Today was an important day with regard to the rankings. Tomorrow will be bigger in every respect with big waves on the forecast, which won’t suit those sailors more used to flat, lake-style conditions.